Attachment fob playes-pianos



0. E. WALL.

ATTACHMENT FOR PLAYER PIANOS.

APPLICATION FILED IUNEZG, 1919.

1 ,331,833. Patented Feb. 24, 1920.

To Soft Pedal Z5 WITNESSES 0. I. new,

ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

ORMOND EDGAR WALL, 0F HONOLULU, TERRITORY OF HAWAII.

ATTACHMENT FOR PLAYER-PIANOS Application filed June 26, 1912-).

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ORMOND EDGAR WALL, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Honolulu, in the Territory of Hawaii, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Attachments for Player-Pianos, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates generally to player pianos, and more particularly to cer tain automatic controlling features in lieu of the usual hand controls to the corre sponding parts, my primary object being the provision of note sheet actuated con trols so that operation of the controls may be brought about strictly in conformity to the particular piece being played.

A further object is the provision of means which may be readily and quickly applied to various characters and makes of player pianos, without materially disturbing its automatic playing parts or their normal actions or functions, so as to permit of the us of a note sheet provided with supplemental openings to effect automatic control of certain parts now controlled by hand.

In considering the invention it is obvious, however, and should be borne in mind, that various details as to connections, particular valve structures, and the like, must necessarily be modified in accordance with the different makes of player actions, and I have therefore shown conventional connections alone to which the invention is not to be considered as limited.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my present invention and forming a part of this specification,

Figure 1 is a vertical transverse section through a portion of a player action to which my invention has been applied,

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a diagram of the connections proposed by my invention, and

Fig. 4. is an enlarged sectional view through a portion of the main and supplemental trackers.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 24, 1920.

Serial no. 306,869.

opposite sides of the series of apertures 12 with which the main tracker 11 is normally provided.

In order that my supplemental tracker 10 may be applied readily and quickly in connection with various makes of player actions, I preferably clamp the same, either to the upper or lower edges of the main tracker 11 by clamps 14:, the latter of which are of course placed near the opposite ends of the trackers, so as to escape interference with the n'iovement of the note sheet 15 which, as usual, passes from the feed roll 16 or the note sheet spool to the take up roll 17, moving downwardly across the faces of the main and supplemental trackers, and provided with supplemental openings indicated at 18 in Fig. 2 which come into registry with the openings 13 of the supplemental tracker 10 and which for this purpose are arranged at the opposite sides of the usual series of note openings indicated at 19.

As seen in F 3, the openings of the supplemental tracker 10 are connected by a tube 20 to a controller box 21, the latter of which has communication with the airexhausting parts of the player action through a pipe 22, and is also provided with internal valves controlling communication between the pipe 22 and a series of pipes 23, this communication being estab lished through the valves of the controller block under control of the tracker tubes 20. It is obvious these valves may be of various constructions and types, as, for instance, duplicates more or less of the primary and secondary valves of a player action.

All of the pipes 23 leading from the controller box need not necessarily be utilized in connection with any particular piano, but there are preferably a suflicientiuunber in the series provided, in order to take care of all normally hand-controlled parts of the piano which it is likely the owner of the piano would desire to place under automatic control.

For instance, the pipes 23 may be so con nected'as to control the soft pedal. the loud pedal, motor acceleration in case the player action is motor driven, soft bass, and soft treble and these actuating connections controlled by the pipes 23 may of course be of various constructions, depending upon their particular use, as well as upon the particular make or type of player action Fig. 3 I have shown one of the connections carried out as, for instance, by means of a pneumatic 24, exhausting of whlch by the placing of its respective pipe 28 into communication with the pipe 22, will efiect ac tuation 'of the soft pedal through the soft pedal rod 25 to which a block. 26 is connected and provided with a pendent arm 27 for engagement by. an arm 28 or" the pneumatic 24. In most instances, this same type of mechanical, pneumatically actuated controlling connection may be utilized for the loud pedal, motor, acceleration, soft bass and soft treble, but where it is necessary to vary its particular construction, I wish of course, to reserve the right to do so.

It is thus obvious that the connections as proposed by my invention may with slight modifications and changes as above described be readily and quickly adapted to various makes and types of player actions without danger of interfering with the normal structure or functions of its parts, for the purpose of bringing about automatic control of certain parts normally hand controlled, whereby the control ofthese' parts may be effected in strict conformity to the particular piecebeing played, the note sheet 15 of which may be either especially manufac- V tured for this purpose, or where already in use, it may be out along the marginal portions thereof, so as to provide it with the necessary perforations for registry with the.

openings 13 of the supplemental tracker 10.

It is also to be understood that I may utilize various forms of connection between the main and supplemental trackers adapting the latter to ready and quick mounting and support upon or adjacent to the main tracker so as to receive the note sheet 15 thereover, althoughthe clamps 14, as shown and described, seem to be especially desirable for this purpose.

It is also to be noted 1. The combination with a player piano having an apertured tracker and certain parts normally under hand control, of a supplemental tracker mounted in connection with the first or main tracker and having openings at the sides of the main tracker from the foregoing that by utilizing the clamps l i as a means apertures, a note sheet having main and supplemental perforations to respectively register with the apertures of the main tracker and the openings ofthe supplemental tracker, pneumatically actuated members for efiecting automatic control of the said hand controlled parts, and a valve mechanism having connection with the supplemental tracker openings and the said pneumatically actuated members, and also having connection with tne air exhausting to res aectivel re ister with the a )ertures ofthe main tracker and the openings of the supplemental tracker, pneumatically actuated expression controlling; members, and valved connections between the said members and the openings of the supplemental tracker, and having connections with the.

air exhausting means of the player action.

3. The combination with a player action including an apertured main tracker, of asupplemental tracker mounted in connection with the main tracker and having openings supplementing the apertures of the main tracker, a pneumatically actuated expression controlling member, and a valve mechanism having connection with the supplemental tracker opening and the said pneumatically actuated member, and also having connection with the air exhausting means of the player action. 7

at. A device of the character described including the combination with the main tracker of a player action, of a supplemental tracker having an opening supplementing the apertures of the main tracker, and means for connecting the supplemental tracker to the'main tracker so as to engage a note sheet. 7

as it passes over. to the main tracker.

5. A device of the character described including the combination with the main tracker of a player action, of a supple mental tracker having an opening supplementing the apertures of the main tracker, and clamps for detachably connecting the supplemental tracker to the main tracker in position to engagea note sheet passing over the main tracker, as and for the purpose described.

, oar 1on1) EDGAR WALL; 

